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Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Should You Buy Bitcoin Before Its Next Halving?
Key Points After a halving event, Bitcoin typically skyrockets in value. The next Bitcoin halving will take place in 2028, so investors have plenty of time to prepare. Bitcoin tends to follow a "boom-and-bust" cycle, so one possible approach is a dollar-cost averaging (DCA) strategy. 10 stocks we like better than Bitcoin › The Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) halving, which takes place once every four years, is highly anticipated by crypto investors, and for good reason. Typically, Bitcoin soars in price in the 12 to 18 months following each halving. Since its April 2024 halving, for example, Bitcoin has already soared past the $100,000 price mark and recently traded near an all-time high of $123,000. So what will happen after the next Bitcoin halving, tentatively scheduled to take place on March 30, 2028? Will Bitcoin again soar in value? Or, as some have suggested, does the Bitcoin halving no longer matter? Let's take a closer look. Bitcoin's track record Just a few months ago, some investors were starting to raise doubts about the importance of the Bitcoin halving. That's because 12 months after its April 2024 halving, Bitcoin was up only 43%. If you're new to crypto, gains of 43% might sound impressive. But for longtime Bitcoin investors, it was tremendously underwhelming. In fact, according to crypto research firm Kaiko, that represents the worst post-halving performance ever for Bitcoin. In the 12 months following the 2020 halving, Bitcoin soared by 541%. In the 12 months following the 2016 halving, Bitcoin soared by 291%. In the 12 months following the 2012 halving, Bitcoin soared by 7,000%. So it's easy to see why investors were once again hoping for triple-digit returns from Bitcoin after the 2024 halving. After the three previous halving events, the worst performance was a gain of 291%! Factors that affect halving performance There are a number of possible explanations for why the 2024 Bitcoin halving underperformed. For example, if you're a statistician, you'll claim sample size error, and say that three data points (2012, 2016, 2020) are hardly enough to make the case for a long-term trend. If you're an economist, you'll claim that macroeconomic forces like inflation, GDP growth, and interest rates matter far more than anything happening with the Bitcoin algorithm. And if you have a finance background, you'll probably highlight the role of institutional investors, which have taken on an important role in determining the price of Bitcoin. The January 2024 launch of the new spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, for example, may have interfered with the Bitcoin halving event that took place just a few months later. All of those are important points. But the real reason for Bitcoin's subpar performance may be much more mundane: We are nearing a point when all the Bitcoin that will ever exist does. Bitcoin has a hard cap of 21 million coins, and 19.9 million of those coins are already in circulation. Thus, any change to the rate of supply of new Bitcoin mattered much less in 2024 than it did in 2012, when only 10.5 million coins were circulating. Almost twice as much Bitcoin exists today as in 2012. I've always thought about the Bitcoin halving from the perspective of diminishing returns. Think about squeezing the juice out of a lemon for a nice glass of lemonade. The first time you squeeze the lemon, you get a lot of juice. By the fourth or fifth squeeze, you may get only a few drops. At some point, that poor lemon just doesn't have any juice left to give. Don't forget about the Bitcoin cycle One common misperception about Bitcoin is that its price only goes up. However, if you look at a long-term chart, you'll immediately notice a regular series of peaks and valleys. And, indeed, Bitcoin does tend to follow a cycle that can only be characterized as "boom and bust." Each year, Bitcoin is either the best-performing asset in the world or it is the worst. Typically what happens is that Bitcoin soars in value for a period of 12 to 18 months after any halving, then crashes. And when I say "crash," I'm not talking about the unofficial Wall Street definition: a rapid market downturn of 20% or more. I'm talking about Bitcoin losing 70%, 80%, or even 90% of its value before eventually recovering. Buying Bitcoin at $120,000 and then watching it crater all the way down to $25,000 could be tough. The best Bitcoin strategy before the 2028 halving So "Should you buy Bitcoin before its next halving?" is a bit of a trick question. You should be buying Bitcoin before March 2028 because it is likely headed higher over the long haul. But you don't want to buy right before a massive, soul-crushing crash. That's the very opposite of a "buy low, sell high" strategy. You might feel so burned by crypto that you'll never want to buy Bitcoin again. One potential solution is dollar-cost averaging (DCA) into Bitcoin. Set aside a little money to buy Bitcoin each month, regardless of how it's performing. You'll buy less when it's soaring in value, as it is now, but you'll be buying more when it has fallen flat on its face. In theory, a DCA strategy will set you up nicely ahead of the next Bitcoin halving in March 2028. You'll be accumulating Bitcoin precisely when it could be ready for another of its epic runs. Should you buy stock in Bitcoin right now? Before you buy stock in Bitcoin, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Bitcoin wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $665,092!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,050,477!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,055% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025 Dominic Basulto has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Should You Buy Bitcoin Before Its Next Halving? was originally published by The Motley Fool
The Mainichi
15-07-2025
- Science
- The Mainichi
Japan building autonomous probe to explore Challenger Deep
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan is set to return to the deepest part of the world ocean with a new autonomous probe that will collect samples and also search for marine resources in Japan's exclusive economic zone. The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) is developing the compact, unmanned probe capable of reaching depths of approximately 11,000 meters, part of the abyssal zone in the Mariana Trench's Challenger Deep in the western Pacific Ocean. The autonomous probe will collect living organisms, mud and rocks from a large area for studies on hydrothermal vents, key for understanding early life, as well as deep-sea ecosystems and ocean trenches linked to the generation of large, destructive earthquakes. JAMSTEC, a state-backed agency based in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, will test the probe through fiscal 2027 before putting it in full use. The Limiting Factor, a U.S. crewed deep submergence vehicle and China's deep submersible Fendouzhe have already reached the deepest point, but their scope of exploration was limited. In 1996, Japan's unmanned Kaiko remotely operated vehicle was the first to collect living organisms and sediment at a depth greater than 10,000 meters in the Challenger Deep, according to JAMSTEC. Kaiko was also used to identify the wreck of the Tsushima Maru, a cargo and passenger ship sunk off Okinawa by the U.S. submarine Bowfin during World War II while carrying hundreds of schoolchildren. Kaiko was lost off Shikoku, one of Japan's main islands, in 2003. Japan's crewed Shinkai 6500 can descend to 6,500 meters and its unmanned Urashima 8000 can go to 8,000 meters. "We need to unlock puzzles of ecosystems and geological conditions in the deepest sea," said Yu Matsunaga, a senior official at JAMSTEC. The probe will have to withstand enormous water pressure in the depths. It will consist of two units -- an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) measuring 50 centimeters in length and width and 1 meter deep, and a lander of about two meters a side that carries the AUV to the seafloor. JAMSTEC has adopted the design because a single-unit structure would make the probe bigger, less mobile and costlier. The probe is so designed that when the lander reaches the seafloor, the AUV will separate and vacuum up organisms and mud while moving on a predetermined route. Engineers will consider whether to add robotic arms to the vehicle. The plan is to have the AUV stay on the seafloor for more than five hours and move a distance of around 4 kilometers. The lander, though immobile, may have a hose to gather samples from around its landing site. In an experiment conducted in 2023, a prototype lander descended to a depth of 9,200 meters in the Japan Trench off the Boso Peninsula east of Tokyo and succeeded in sending visual data over the water by means of sound waves. Other technologies under development include the combined use of cameras and artificial intelligence to allow the AUV to move and collect samples. If the AUV is outfitted with rechargeable batteries and allowed to navigate automatically, it will be able to expand its scope of activity as there will be no need to connect a vessel at sea with cables for communication and power supply. JAMSTEC will begin testing the AUV and the lander as a unit in fiscal 2026 and lower the probe to 9,000 meters to collect samples in fiscal 2027. It will then begin the full use of the probe for its research activities.
Japan Today
12-07-2025
- Science
- Japan Today
Japan building autonomous probe to explore Challenger Deep
A prototype of an autonomous unmanned probe is seen exploring the seafloor in Suruga Bay, Shizuoka Prefecture, in February 2024. By Kento Iwamura Japan is set to return to the deepest part of the world ocean with a new autonomous probe that will collect samples and also search for marine resources in Japan's exclusive economic zone. The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) is developing the compact, unmanned probe capable of reaching depths of approximately 11,000 meters, part of the abyssal zone in the Mariana Trench's Challenger Deep in the western Pacific Ocean. The autonomous probe will collect living organisms, mud and rocks from a large area for studies on hydrothermal vents, key for understanding early life, as well as deep-sea ecosystems and ocean trenches linked to the generation of large, destructive earthquakes. JAMSTEC, a state-backed agency based in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, will test the probe through fiscal 2027 before putting it in full use. The Limiting Factor, a U.S. crewed deep submergence vehicle and China's deep submersible Fendouzhe have already reached the deepest point, but their scope of exploration was limited. In 1996, Japan's unmanned Kaiko remotely operated vehicle was the first to collect living organisms and sediment at a depth greater than 10,000 meters in the Challenger Deep, according to JAMSTEC. Kaiko was also used to identify the wreck of the Tsushima Maru, a cargo and passenger ship sunk off Okinawa by the U.S. submarine Bowfin during World War II while carrying hundreds of schoolchildren. Kaiko was lost off Shikoku, one of Japan's main islands, in 2003. Japan's crewed Shinkai 6500 can descend to 6,500 meters and its unmanned Urashima 8000 can go to 8,000 meters. "We need to unlock puzzles of ecosystems and geological conditions in the deepest sea," said Yu Matsunaga, a senior official at JAMSTEC. The probe will have to withstand enormous water pressure in the depths. It will consist of two units -- an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) measuring 50 centimeters in length and width and 1 meter deep, and a lander of about two meters a side that carries the AUV to the seafloor. JAMSTEC has adopted the design because a single-unit structure would make the probe bigger, less mobile and costlier. The probe is so designed that when the lander reaches the seafloor, the AUV will separate and vacuum up organisms and mud while moving on a predetermined route. Engineers will consider whether to add robotic arms to the vehicle. The plan is to have the AUV stay on the seafloor for more than five hours and move a distance of around 4 kilometers. The lander, though immobile, may have a hose to gather samples from around its landing site. In an experiment conducted in 2023, a prototype lander descended to a depth of 9,200 meters in the Japan Trench off the Boso Peninsula east of Tokyo and succeeded in sending visual data over the water by means of sound waves. Other technologies under development include the combined use of cameras and artificial intelligence to allow the AUV to move and collect samples. If the AUV is outfitted with rechargeable batteries and allowed to navigate automatically, it will be able to expand its scope of activity as there will be no need to connect a vessel at sea with cables for communication and power supply. JAMSTEC will begin testing the AUV and the lander as a unit in fiscal 2026 and lower the probe to 9,000 meters to collect samples in fiscal 2027. It will then begin the full use of the probe for its research activities. © KYODO
Kyodo News
12-07-2025
- Science
- Kyodo News
FEATURE: Japan building autonomous probe to explore Challenger Deep
TOKYO - Japan is set to return to the deepest part of the world ocean with a new autonomous probe that will collect samples and also search for marine resources in Japan's exclusive economic zone. The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) is developing the compact, unmanned probe capable of reaching depths of approximately 11,000 meters, part of the abyssal zone in the Mariana Trench's Challenger Deep in the western Pacific Ocean. The autonomous probe will collect living organisms, mud and rocks from a large area for studies on hydrothermal vents, key for understanding early life, as well as deep-sea ecosystems and ocean trenches linked to the generation of large, destructive earthquakes. JAMSTEC, a state-backed agency based in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, will test the probe through fiscal 2027 before putting it in full use. The Limiting Factor, a U.S. crewed deep submergence vehicle and China's deep submersible Fendouzhe have already reached the deepest point, but their scope of exploration was limited. In 1996, Japan's unmanned Kaiko remotely operated vehicle was the first to collect living organisms and sediment at a depth greater than 10,000 meters in the Challenger Deep, according to JAMSTEC. Kaiko was also used to identify the wreck of the Tsushima Maru, a cargo and passenger ship sunk off Okinawa by the U.S. submarine Bowfin during World War II while carrying hundreds of schoolchildren. Kaiko was lost off Shikoku, one of Japan's main islands, in 2003. Japan's crewed Shinkai 6500 can descend to 6,500 meters and its unmanned Urashima 8000 can go to 8,000 meters. "We need to unlock puzzles of ecosystems and geological conditions in the deepest sea," said Yu Matsunaga, a senior official at JAMSTEC. The probe will have to withstand enormous water pressure in the depths. It will consist of two units -- an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) measuring 50 centimeters in length and width and 1 meter deep, and a lander of about two meters a side that carries the AUV to the seafloor. JAMSTEC has adopted the design because a single-unit structure would make the probe bigger, less mobile and costlier. The probe is so designed that when the lander reaches the seafloor, the AUV will separate and vacuum up organisms and mud while moving on a predetermined route. Engineers will consider whether to add robotic arms to the vehicle. The plan is to have the AUV stay on the seafloor for more than five hours and move a distance of around 4 kilometers. The lander, though immobile, may have a hose to gather samples from around its landing site. In an experiment conducted in 2023, a prototype lander descended to a depth of 9,200 meters in the Japan Trench off the Boso Peninsula east of Tokyo and succeeded in sending visual data over the water by means of sound waves. Other technologies under development include the combined use of cameras and artificial intelligence to allow the AUV to move and collect samples. If the AUV is outfitted with rechargeable batteries and allowed to navigate automatically, it will be able to expand its scope of activity as there will be no need to connect a vessel at sea with cables for communication and power supply. JAMSTEC will begin testing the AUV and the lander as a unit in fiscal 2026 and lower the probe to 9,000 meters to collect samples in fiscal 2027. It will then begin the full use of the probe for its research activities.
Japan Today
17-06-2025
- Business
- Japan Today
Why stablecoins are gaining popularity
Tether is a stablecoin pegged to the dollar By Lucie LEQUIER Stablecoins -- a form of cryptocurrency backed by traditional assets -- are gaining traction, with the U.S. Senate set to vote Tuesday on a bill to regulate such digital tokens. But as stablecoins move closer to the financial mainstream, experts warn that weak regulation could leave investors and the financial system vulnerable. What are stablecoins? Stablecoins play a key role in crypto markets, enabling users to trade digital assets without relying on traditional banks, instead using a decentralised register known as blockchain. Unlike volatile cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, stablecoins track the value of traditional assets -- such as the U.S. dollar or gold -- enabling greater stability. Tether and USDC, for example, are pegged to the dollar, backed by reserves held by their issuing companies. They are useful internationally because they enable "fast, low-cost cross-border payments", Dessislava Aubert, analyst at crypto insights firm Kaiko, told AFP. This is "especially valuable in emerging markets where access to hard currency and traditional banking services is often limited", Aubert added. Examples include Argentina, Nigeria and Turkey, The market value of stablecoins soared to $246 billion in May, up from $20 billion in 2020, according to Deutsche Bank. And the total number of transactions in 2024 surpassed those of Visa and Mastercard. USDC's issuer, Circle, made a splash this month when it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Why is the U.S. regulating them? To ensure the stability of stablecoins, the United States is pushing for issuers to hold sufficient low-risk, liquid assets -- such as dollars and Treasury bills. This could also boost demand for U.S. debt and the greenback. The proposed legislation would require major stablecoin issuers to undergo regular audits and make it tougher to launch new tokens. These safeguards became more urgent after the collapse of the Terra stablecoin in 2022, which showed how these tokens can "depeg", or lose the link to the asset they are meant to track. There's a risk that an organisation may not be trustworthy or could be hacked, making audits and checks vital, explained Murat Kantarcioglu, a computer science professor at Virginia Tech University in the United States. Another possibility is that a loss of trust in the stablecoin may ripple beyond the crypto world, hitting the assets that back these tokens. Does the bill go far enough? "The new rules could make it harder for start-ups to issue stablecoins, creating a risk that a few big companies -- such as tech giants -- could dominate the market," Aubert told AFP over email. According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon and Walmart are considering issuing their own stablecoin, which their customers could use for purchases. Democrats opposing the bill say risks of speculation, money laundering and political conflicts of interest associated with stablecoins are not sufficiently addressed. Notably, President Donald Trump's family has helped launch a stablecoin called USD1, used by Emirati fund MGX. And even with new regulations, in the event of issuer bankruptcy, stablecoin losses "are not explicitly covered by government insurance programs", unlike "bank deposits, which are insured up to $250,000", Aubert pointed out. How do other countries regulate them? In Europe, regulation on cryptocurrencies (MiCA), effective since the end of December, provides a framework for issuing stablecoins. The UK, South Korea and Brazil are moving forward with regulations. China banned cryptocurrencies in 2021 and is instead developing its own central bank digital currency, the e-yuan. Russia is considering a stablecoin backed by the rouble or friendly currencies such as the yuan. © 2025 AFP
